Daire filled the three large mugs Silvia had set out, then carried the cups to the small table.
He set Silvia’s cup labeled WE CAN’T ALL BE PRINCESSES, SOMEONE HAS TO CLAP AS I WALK PAST in front of her. The line on the cup was so unlike her that he’d had to ask. It was a birthday gift from Therese. That, he believed.
Daire took the Mat-Su Fire Department one for himself and offered Sam the mug with a Rottweiler on the front, the words THANKS FOR THE BELLY RUBS AND PICKING UP MY POO on the back. He assumed the cup was another relic from Harvey’s previous owner.
Sam lifted the cup. Read the words, then laughed. “Nice! Thanks, Daire.”
Daire lifted his mug. “Anytime, bro! Don’t think I’m gonna start calling you Dad.”
Sam huffed. “I wouldn’t expect you would. And for the record, I am your brother. I signed over my rights to Mom and Dad the day you were born. They really were—are—your Mom and Dad, legally and respectively. I never expected Dad to die when we were all so young, which put me at the head of the family. I know you feel I treated you differently, but if you’d open your eyes and heart, you’d see that I’ve been the head of this family, trying my best for all of you ever since Dad died.”
Daire nodded. “You have, Sam. I never doubted that.” He blew out a long breath. “So, what happened?” What bothered Daire most was how much Sam had treated him like a child, acting as if he was always screwing up, and here, he’d gotten a girl pregnant in high school.
Sam leaned back in his chair, propping a foot on his opposite knee. “I…” He shook his head. “I was going to say that I screwed up, but you know what, Daire? You were the best mistake I ever made.” Tears pooled in Sam’s eyes. “I’ve wanted to tell you for so long now, but I swear… Every time the moment seemed right, something was happening in our lives.”
Daire understood that. “Can I ask a question?”
Sam sniffed. “Of course.”
“You know what hurts the most?”
Sam shook his head again but didn’t interrupt Daire’s rhetorical question.
“The fact that everyone knew but me.”
Sam jerked his head up. “That’s not true, Daire. Mom, yes, of course. But…Nora only knew because of our time in the wilderness together. I actually didn’t tell her outright. She figured it out. Then, I only told Vince because he absolutely needed to know. When he was going through all of that with Valery, he was ready to jump off a bridge—worse, I was afraid he was going on a drinking binge. He thought I was so perfect.” Sam sputtered out a laugh. “As you know, I’m far from perfect.”
Daire reached across the table. “Sam, you are so close to perfect it drives the rest of us crazy. You made one mistake. And for the record, I’m glad you made a mistake and got a woman pregnant, too, obviously. I just wish you weren’t so hard on me. And I feel you should have told me long before I had to find out today. But, again, I agree, we’ve been on a roller coaster over the last couple of years.” Daire rubbed his eyes. “So, why now? Why did this woman suddenly show up now? What does she want?”
Sam laughed humorlessly again. “Well, I have to say, you’ve always been a rather astute young man. Ava does want something. But you also know how Nora is; she absolutely insisted that I not bad mouth Ava. But, honestly, I don’t know how to tell you what happened without her coming off as the bad guy.”
“Just tell me the truth, Sam. I don’t really care what happened. I can pretty much figure out the beginning. Obviously, Ava didn’t want me, so Mom and Dad adopted me. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that much.”
Sam shrugged. “Okay. Good. Then I don’t have to bring up that sore spot. Yeah, Ava came back for something. Something only you can offer her.”
Daire took his eyes off Sam and looked at Silvia. She reached out and squeezed his hand. Yeah, they’d technically only been dating for less than a week, but he’d been in love with her for so long, trying to please her the only way he knew how, by doing a good job at work, that he craved her support.
“What does she want?” Daire asked again. He couldn’t think of a better way to phrase his question. Knowing this woman gave him up twenty-three years ago, and the only reason she showed up was that she wanted something was not helping his mood. Typically, he was good-natured. Rarely did he get upset, but this woman showing up, coupled with the fact his family had lied to him his entire life, was testing his patience.
“Ava has developed cirrhosis of the liver after a long battle with hepatitis B. Apparently, the doctors told her three years ago that she needed a liver transplant. But because of her continued alcohol and drug abuse, she’s not a candidate. She swears she’s been clean for more than a year now, but her time’s running out—”
Daire jumped up. “She wants part of my liver?”
Sam sighed. “And that’s why I chased her away from the house when she showed up. I’m sorry, Daire. I knew she wanted something. Ava always wants something—” He smacked his hand over his mouth. “I’m sorry. That’s not…fair. I did love Ava. So did Mom. Everyone loved her. She was great.” Sam sniffed again. “We dated all through high school. Then, something happened when she turned sixteen. Something personal. Instead of seeking psychological help, Ava turned to drugs. When I found out she was pregnant, I dragged her to Mom and Dad.” He looked up at Daire again, and for the first time Daire could ever remember, Sam looked like a hurt child, not the man he’d looked up to all these years.
“Mom moved to Anchorage with her to clean her up,” Sam continued. “Ava still didn’t think she could take care of a child, but she stayed clean throughout the pregnancy. Then, after she had you, Mom and Dad set Ava up in an apartment in Anchorage, paying for everything so she could start a new life. They officially adopted you—” Sam choked on his words.
Sam wiped his eyes, then continued, “They were so great, Daire. You were so young when Dad died, so you’ll never know how much patience he possessed. I was so scared, but not once did Dad or Mom yell at me. As much trouble as I brought into their lives, they never showed any frustration. After you were born, it all just fell together easily. No one knew. Everyone loved you like the baby brother you were to us. I wasn’t ready to be a father. Ava certainly wasn’t capable of raising a child. It was the right choice.”
Daire felt tears well up in his eyes again. He pictured Sam begging Mom and Dad for help. And he had to be thankful to Sam for that.
“Thank you, Sam. For fighting for me from the start. I think I understand. I still wish I’d known before she showed up, but I’m not mad at you or Mom. How could I be?” He exhaled long and deep, then walked away from the table. It took him only a few seconds to decide his next words. He walked back to the table and leaned against the chair. “But there is no way I’m giving that woman anything, especially not a part of a vital organ that I might need someday for someone I do love.”
~ Silvia ~
Silvia took a spot on the sofa again as Daire said goodbye to Sam.
Although they had talked over their troubles, nothing had been resolved about Ava.
No, Ava didn’t sound like a good person—then or now. She’d obviously known how to find Daire. As Daire had told Silvia from the first time she’d visited his house, the family had lived there since before he was born.
But instead of seeking out her son and attempting to explain, Ava had waited until she needed something from him.
Silvia couldn’t imagine how she would feel if her sister’s birth mother decided to show up after all these years. She knew one thing; she would instantly hate her for giving up her sister. But…she also had to be thankful. If the woman had never given up her sister, Silvia never would have known the unselfish love she’d received from her sister. And she wouldn’t have her identity, an identity that, so far, none of her pursuers had been able to figure out. After all, Silvia’s sister had taken on the family’s last name. Her ex hadn’t even known that her sister had been adopted. Like Daire’s family, Silvia’s mom had thought it better if the real Silvia Markow had never known that she was adopted.
Daire closed the door and made his way back to the sofa. He sank down, dropping his head into his hands. “I can’t believe this.”
Silvia rubbed his back. “Can’t believe how lucky you are to have a father and grandmother who wanted you so much that they sacrificed their own lifestyles to save your life?”
Daire scoffed and looked up at her. “Man, you’re tough.”
Silvia forced a smile. “Isn’t that what you said you loved about me?”
“I love everything about you.” He leaned forward to kiss her, but she pulled back.
“I’m sorry, Daire, but we need to talk.”
His eyes rounded, looking like Harvey did whenever she scolded him.
She sighed. “Daire, I’m happy you seem to have forgiven your—well, Sam. And Claire. But I think you need to speak with your birth mother.”
He started to balk, so she raised a hand to his lips. “I’ve done nothing but listen for the last couple of hours. It’s my turn to talk. Unless…” She stared up at him, waiting, making sure he did want her opinion. “If you really don’t want my opinion, I’ll shut my mouth. But there’s a reason this concerns me. And you are the one who asked me to stay.”
“I do want your opinion, Silvia. But how could I possibly want anything to do with a woman who not only didn’t want me before I was born but continued not to want me years later? I’ve been more than capable of taking care of myself for the last eight years. If she was concerned that she couldn’t take care of a child, that’s not been an issue for a long time. No…she waited until she was on her deathbed to seek me out.”
“I understand all of that, Daire. You have every reason to be angry. You have every reason not to want to help her. But I’m asking you to try. I know there are circumstances that people can’t control.”
“Silvia…” He sighed, resting his forehead against hers.
She closed her eyes, trying to keep herself from crying. She knew she was probably making a huge mistake. Not the biggest mistake of her life, but she was getting ready to do something utterly stupid. Still, she couldn’t stop herself. She knew Daire, knew she wanted to go further with him. Knew he was trustworthy. He’d forgiven Sam and Claire, too, so she knew he would understand. She also realized that, even though he’d held back the actual words, Therese was correct. Daire had been secretly in love with her for a long time, and Silvia was sure she’d fallen in love with him in only a week.
She remained where she was against him, eyes cast down, then she uttered words she hadn’t spoken in eight years. “My name is Christiana Vargas Wheeler.”